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Biomedical subjects

C Santos-Burgoa

Publications and source records attributed to C Santos-Burgoa.

28 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

[Prevalence of hearing loss and correlated factors in a cement plant].

OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of occupational exposure to noise, as well as its relationship with other factors that can induce hearing loss. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In January and February 1997, we conducted sonometry and dosimetry tests in a cement factory, as well as audiometric test in 85 cement workers, to identify sources of noise and evaluate the effect to noise exposure and other factors, of the prevalence of occupational hearing loss. Statistical analysis was conducted using measures of central tendency, bivariate analysis and polynominal regression models. RESULTS: High noise levels were found in the crushing, crude milling, and cement milling sites. The highest individual dose corresponded to the packer job post. Fifty-five per cent of the study population presented some degree of hearing loss due to noise exposure. The cement processing area with the highest percentage of damaged workers was calcination. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that noise is a serious risk factor in particular sites of cement factories, and also that an elevated number of hearing loss cases are due to occupational noise exposure in this industry; Our findings underscore the need for designing and implementing hearing protection programs, to assure the health and safety of cement workers.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Method for estimating the population risk attributable to a transfer station of municipal solid waste].

Due to the great volume of municipal solid waste that is produced daily in the Metropolitan Area of Mexico City a sound management has been an impossible task. This is why during the past few years solid waste transfer stations have been constructed in the City, allowing a more efficient solid waste collection. The attributable risk to the population's health for the operation of such stations needs to be assessed in order to have them working within the urbanized areas without posing a potential risk to the health of the inhabitants of the inhabitants of the surrounding areas.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Considerations on human rabies transmitted by bats].

The purpose of this study is to present a combined analysis of eight outbreaks of human rabies transmitted by bats in Brazil and Peru. Some factors present in many outbreaks were identified, as follows: most of the outbreaks occurred in small villages in the rural Amazonian region; there was a change of local production processes; little or no cattle was present; the houses were vulnerable; access to health services was difficult. Other information was also analyzed, for instance: attack rate; incubation period; site of the attack; occupation, sex and age of the victim. As part of the study of these recent outbreaks, a review of the bibliography on human rabies transmitted by bats was also carried out.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Diabetes mellitus and the health care transition].

To document the existence of an epidemiologic and a health care transition in Mexico, diabetes mellitus (DM) mortality was analyzed. Age and sex adjusted mortality rates were estimated for each one of the states of Mexico, as well as the mean age at death, the number of years of potential life lost, and their percent distribution. The geographic distribution of these variables was plotted in maps according to tertiles or quartiles. The proportion of deaths due to acute and chronic complications of DM was classified according to community size. Polarized patterns of DM mortality as well as in the percentage contribution of deaths due to its acute and chronic complications were observed, in agreement with the postulated transitional process.

Acute Disease↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Basic aspects of public health surveillance for the 90s].

In this paper we propose a wider scope for public health surveillance in order to incorporate demographic and health systems monitoring along with activities conventionally associated with epidemiologic surveillance. This new conception stems, in turn, from a revised definition of public health, which describes--not a sector of activity or a type of health service--but a level of aggregation based on the population at large. In our review of the ideas that lead to the institutionalization of health surveillance, we stress the broad concepts developed by such pioneers as Graunt and Petty. Their original concepts emerged from their active concerns for the public's health at a time when no scientific theory of contagion was available--let alone any knowledge about how to treat persons for the major diseases that affected them. Later on, and largely as the result of impressive advances in biomedical knowledge, surveillance activities tended to specialize and to concentrate predominantly on disease outbreaks and on salient adverse health conditions. Health surveillance became closely associated with epidemiologic surveillance, which in turn became associated with the ability to respond promptly to adverse health outcomes. Recently, we have witnessed a gradual broadening of both the concepts and the practice of health surveillance. Paradoxically, the newer proposals tend to recapture part of the spirit and scope of earlier definitions, prompted perhaps by such thoughtful historic parallels as the newly emerging health problems for which we have no clear-cut solution. If one element has to be stressed to promote the objectives of health surveillance today, it is the need to anticipate health outcomes and not just respond to them. This, in turn, requires an increased attention to the surveillance of risk factors, and a greater understanding of the complex causal relationships that those factors--including behavioral, lifestyle, and environmental ones--with adverse health outcomes and disability. Needless to say that, the first and foremost aim of health care--and of modern surveillance--is to promote the well-being of individuals by improving their health.

Epidemiologic Methods↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Serum cholesterol and diabetes mellitus: main independent risk factors of ischemic heart disease mortality in Mexico].

In order to evaluate the contribution of hypertension, diabetes, smoking and serum cholesterol on coronary heart disease mortality in Mexico, an ecologic study was developed. Mortality rates of coronary heart disease (CHD), diabetes and hypertension; the proportion of people smoking six or more cigarettes daily; and the mean serum cholesterol levels, were recorded for each of the states of Mexico. All variables were included in a multiple linear regression model, taking CHD mortality as the dependent variable. All variables explained more than two thirds of the occurrence of CHD mortality. However either using a backward or a forward method, only serum cholesterol and diabetes mortality had a significative contribution on CHD mortality (re = 0.65; F = 27; p < 0.0001). Coronary heart disease mortality in Mexico has shown an increasing trend in the last 50 years. Mexican-americans in the United States have a high prevalence of major risk factors, but few studies have done to assess its contribution in Mexicans living in Mexico. This increase may be explained by an increase in the occurrence of diabetes and the still denied importance of high serum cholesterol.

Cholesterol↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[An evaluation of the new program of Master of Sciences in Environmental Health].

Our country is presently undergoing a historical, environmental and economic transition, along with an intense industrial expansion. As the rapid industrialization has not run parallel with the strengthening of environmental sanitary infrastructure, metropolitan cities have grown anarchically, turning over excessive amounts of air, water and soil pollutants. The harmonic combination of development, environment and health requires the supervision of trained human resources. The scarcity of such resources is a major restriction to overcome. In response to the lack of human resources devoted to environmental issues, the School of Public Health of Mexico established the Specialty of Environmental Health. In coordination with experts and decision makers from the health services, this specialty was reorganized in a Master of Science Degree in Environmental Health. Several institutions participated in this program actively, either with financial support or with human resources. The major obstacle to the continuity of the Program has been the lack of institutional financial support for students to devote fully to the programs. Nevertheless this Master's Degree is expected to undergo intense development in coming years. In the future, this program will have to reduce its epidemiologic focus and adopt a more general one. Efforts will be directed toward a wider national and international projection.

Curriculum↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Particle exposure modeling in the general population and risk of respiratory disease].

Total exposure assessment identifies the various sources of exposure to air pollution which affect each individual, thus functioning as a useful tool in clinical and environmental exposure management. A cross sectional survey was performed in order to create a total exposure model of inhaled particulates. This survey involved 544 subjects located within the Mexico City Merced monitoring station, an area covering three kilometers in diameter. Two questionnaires were developed one on housing and the other on respiratory symptoms. A diary on daily activity was kept, and an outdoor monitoring station was also installed. A new technology was adapted and incorporated for personal and indoor monitoring. A correlation of up to 0.38 was identified between the environmental concentrations. Exposures at home and at other extramural activities are most predictive of personal exposure. It was determined that 8.8% of the subjects studied had chronic bronchitis, and that this percentage increases with greater levels of exposure and outdoor sports. These findings conclude that the models are useful for risk assessment and management in Mexico.

Adolescent↗